Here’s a Post I wrote a while back. Make your sunday afternoon or monday morning productive and WOW your week!!!
Has this happened to you; Friday comes and you look back on your week and wondered if you actually accomplished anything at all? For many years I have started my day in a certain way, everyday the same way. I wrote about this a few months ago in a post Determine Your Day. But a few years ago I began purposely starting my week. I found starting my day right was good, but many times events of the week crowded out the good intentions of the day. Here’s how I do it.
1. Join a faith community – Church
- I always start my week in church
(I know, I’m a pastor—It’s my job—when it wasn’t I still started my week in church)
- This always reminds me to put first things first
- I am encouraged when I am around people of faith
On Sunday afternoon or early Monday morning I take 1 hour and prepare for my upcoming week. I first review, then preview, then schedule. Here is a breakdown of how I do it.
1 hour to WOW! my week
2. Review
- Accomplishments and projects in progress
- This helps to know what needs to be dealt with
- What communication needs to go out?
- Good job and thank you notes for accomplishments
3. Preview
- I look at the overall schedule of what is coming up and make the necessary adjustment due to the events of last week.
- When I preview my week I can prepare myself for a heavy schedule or a light one.
- I also prepare my family for the possibility of missed dinners, family events, or the need to reschedule events. When my kids lived at home we would have a weekly family meeting/dinner to go over the weekly schedule for everyone. The weekly family meeting became a strategic part of family life.
4. Schedule
- Set Goals to accomplish
- If deadlines aren’t made there can be no accountability
- Keeps me purposed and productive
- Schedule the important things
- Family time
- Exercise time
- Social time
- Spiritual time
- Mental/personal time
Keeps me focused and doesn’t let days and weeks go by without sharpening the saw (Keeps me sharp).
- Schedule meeting and appointments
- This gives an overall view of the week
- Helps to avoid double scheduling and overbooking
- Schedule tasks
- This seems to be a no brainer but many times when I don’t schedule and prepare my task list it doesn’t get done.
Question: What do you do to be productive?